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Do you remember the suicide over the "national" anthem and flag? Well, here is what the newspaper reported 2 days after: "Nonoka called Sunday's suicide 'extremely tragic' and said, 'It's about time that the government thoroughly reconsiders whether it is appropriate for orders to be issued to ensure the singing of 'Kimigayo' and the raising of the Hinomaru. "Nonaka quoted the prime minister [Keizo Obuchi} as saying, 'I have my opinion about the current circumstances, despite my repeating the government's official position on the matter...' "The government hopes to have a bill passed by the end of the next year, according to a government source. "Liberal Democratic Party General Council Chairman Takashi Fukaya said... he strongly supported the idea of legally designating the Hinomaru as the national flag and the 'Kimigayo' as the national anthem." So it looks like Japan might finally get a national flag and national anthem in less than two years from now. And it only took almost 50 years for this to happen! Now let me tell you about one more news event that caught my attention. This one you might remember from last year. A junior high school boy decapitated a 11-year-old boy in Kobe. It was big news in Japan, and I think around the world, because of the nature of the crime. "The Kobe District Court on Thursday ordered a 16-year-old boy found responsible for the murder of an 11-year-old boy, and his parents to pay about ¥104 million in compensation to the victim's parents. "The suit called on the court to determine responsibility for the crime and to order those found responsible to pay compensation. "The defendants accepted their responsibility...and reportedly offered to pay an initial sum of ¥1 million, followed by monthly installments of ¥20,000 (~ $200), with an additional ¥180,000 during the two bonus seasons of the year." But the victim's family didn't agree to this arrangement. The victim's father was quoted at the end of the article as saying he was happy with the settlement, and "the court's decision to order the 16-year-old and his parents to pay compensation was significant, because it is usually difficult to apportion responsibility in crimes involving juveniles." Don't you find this last quote a bit strange? I can see how one might be able to include the parents in the blame if they had left a gun out or had told the child he should kill the young boy. But the parents will be the ones who will pay most of the money, even though they weren't directly involved in the murder. I am not sure that it is fair to hold them responsible for their child's actions in such a fashion. Valerie Straayer |